(CNN) - The Obama administration released three sample letters on Thursday detailing what information insurance companies must provide consumers if they intend to renew health plans originally scheduled for cancellation.

The release comes a week after President Barack Obama announced a proposed fix that would allow some Americans facing cancellations to keep their current health insurance plans. The President's proposal requires that companies choosing to renew plans also provide their customers with certain information.

The three letters released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services cover three different scenarios. The first must be sent to consumers who have already received a cancellation notice alerting them that they will have to choose a new plan for 2014.

If an insurance company has decided to follow the President's proposal and renew a plan it had planned on canceling, it must detail the ways in which the old plan does not comply with consumer protections included in the Affordable Care Act. The company must also tell customers how they can choose a different, more comprehensive plan on their local insurance exchange where they could be eligible for financial assistance.

The second letter includes much of the same language, and must be sent to consumers who may not have received a cancellation notice but who now have the opportunity to renew plans not in compliance with the ACA.

The third letter notifies customers whose plans are still going to be canceled that they still have other opportunities to purchase insurance. Despite the President's effort last week to keep his promise that if people like their health insurance they could keep it, some current policies will still be canceled.

At least seven states have said they will not go along with the President's proposal to allow companies to renew older plans for one year, and some insurance companies may decide not to renew those plans even in states where they're allowed.

In those cases, companies are still required to inform customers that they may be eligible to purchase more robust insurance both on and off the new insurance marketplace.

soundoff(27 Responses)

Sniffit

Good. Informed consumers make the best choices. Insurers were deliberately relying on withholding these bits of information and the fact that the majority of the public doesn't really have any understanding of these things to dupe people into rolling over into more expensive plans directly through the insurer: more expensive and no eligibility for a subsidy. Sometimes the exact same plan was even available on the exchange and would cost them less both because it was priced lower AND because they could get the subsidy that way. Anyone who does rolls over their insurance without checking the exchange after receiving this information IS A MORON. I don't what political stripes you wear or how mad you are or how ideologically opposed to it you are or whatever: do what's in your best interests for once. CHECK. INFORM YOURSELF. THEN DECIDE. Don't just take what the insurance company tells you or Limbaugh screams at you at face value.

November 21, 2013 05:17 pm at 5:17 pm |

don in albuquerque

Would you buy liability insurance for your car that had a $500.00 annual cap. Probably not. But your willing to do that with your life?

November 21, 2013 05:23 pm at 5:23 pm |

Tampa Tim

Right wingnuts with worthless junk policies should be dancing in the streets. They get to keep on paying for something that won't cover them.

November 21, 2013 05:23 pm at 5:23 pm |

just asking

which one of them says this?

"we have decided, for political reasons, not to screw you over this year hoping you will not throw democrats out of office in the 2014 election. however, we will screw you over next year, shortly after the 2014 election when we hopefully save our political skins. thank you very much for going along with yet another obama-democrat con job."

November 21, 2013 05:26 pm at 5:26 pm |

Tampa Tim

Don – Thank you. Brilliant analogy.

November 21, 2013 05:29 pm at 5:29 pm |

The REAL Truth...

@just asking – yawn...
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How many companies in your area have had plans cancelled, revised, and costs increased 10-25% by insurance companies over the last 10 yrs.. ?? The insurance companies are sticking it to the American people.. again.. and you are all for it. I'd bet your policy wasn't cancelled.

November 21, 2013 05:35 pm at 5:35 pm |

Donna

Can somebody point me to the law passed by Congress that alllows this to happen?

November 21, 2013 05:36 pm at 5:36 pm |

The REAL Truth...

@Donna – Can somebody point me to the law passed by Congress that alllows this to happen?
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What happened to that personal responsibility you are fall for??? Turn off Fox.. do ur own research! Have an nice day.

November 21, 2013 05:40 pm at 5:40 pm |

just saying

this is the sort of politcally driven insanity when your government gets in bed with the health insurance companies. the politicians lie to you and screw you over then strong arm the insurance companies to do something to take the heat off of them politcially. meanwhile, you and your families are pawns in their little government controlled healthcare charade. yes, get used to it people. if obamacare doesn't get repealed, you and your families will remain govenrment healthcarfe hostages submit to the whim of whereever feels the need to jerk you around for whatever reason, maybe to help subsidize one of their political allies.

November 21, 2013 05:40 pm at 5:40 pm |

Donna

The REAL Truth...
@Donna – Can somebody point me to the law passed by Congress that alllows this to happen?
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What happened to that personal responsibility you are fall for??? Turn off Fox.. do ur own research! Have an nice day.
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You forgot to mention that law that allows this to happen.... Is that because there is none?

So now our government can force us to buy a private product and one person, the President can modify it or intervene whenever he feels the political need to do so? My elected Congressional representatives never voted for anything like this. So where is this coming from? Absent a law, it must be coming from Executive threats as these people are meeting in private with the insurance company executives and jerking us all around for political reasons.

We need to start demanding thaty independent reporters be allowedc into these meetings so we know what is going on. This is looking less and less like a democracy every day with Obama pulling this BS.

Anyone with a brain would choose the REAL benefits of Obamacare over a worthless policy. No lifetime caps being the main one. Pre-existing conditions covered being the second. Plus the rest of the protections.

November 21, 2013 06:00 pm at 6:00 pm |

A True Conservative

I'll bet the majority of those in favor Obamacare are either on Medicaid or in one of the union policies that got special treatment from the administration. The funniest thing is when the supporters find out that THEY have to pay for this mess....then....suddenly....they don't like the law.....we tried to warn you!

November 21, 2013 06:05 pm at 6:05 pm |

Sniffit

"Can somebody point me to the law passed by Congress that alllows this to happen?"

Heckler v. Chaney. Read it and learn about executive power and discretion when enforcing the laws..

November 21, 2013 06:41 pm at 6:41 pm |

Sniffit

"this is the sort of politcally driven insanity when your government gets in bed with the health insurance companies"

Yeah, oil companies only please!

November 21, 2013 06:41 pm at 6:41 pm |

TJC2

Wow, still making it up as they go along. This spectacle is giving the Three Stooges a run for their money......unfirtunately it is a slow-mo tragedy for the country and the millions of responsbile citizens who will be left without coverage as a result of the ACA..

November 21, 2013 06:43 pm at 6:43 pm |

smith

The ACA just gets worse and worse everyday. There is no stopping it or quick fix, people are just gonna have suck it up and deal with it. Some advice for parents, encourage your children to join the military so they are exempt from this nightmare. Its the only thing that saved my butt.

Then tell your right wing GOP Tea Party folks to stay out of womens healthcare....the right to
Chose....contraceptives. ....keep your policy out of our lives and bedroom! !

November 21, 2013 07:01 pm at 7:01 pm |

Jeff Brown in Jersey

@just saying
this is the sort of politcally driven insanity when your government gets in bed with the health insurance companies. the politicians lie to you and screw you over then strong arm the insurance companies to do something to take the heat off of them politcially.

Yeah, kind of like what the health insurance companies were doing for the last 35 years until Barack Obama had the stones to stand up to them.

November 21, 2013 08:18 pm at 8:18 pm |

NC

I am glad we have a top of the line group insurance plan that already covered everything. Remember people you get what you pay for. Some of the plans did not cover anything so people were not paying for real health insurance. It never ceases to amaze me that people will pay more to insure their vehicle than insure their body.

November 21, 2013 08:29 pm at 8:29 pm |

Bill

Ronald Reagan: "If you get in bed with government you're going to get more than just a good night's sleep."

November 21, 2013 08:29 pm at 8:29 pm |

Gurgyl

These idiots watch too much Fox garbage–just turn off that garbage.

November 21, 2013 08:34 pm at 8:34 pm |

Maria Rivera-Carvalho

Dear Republicans: It will work, you cannot stop history. Time to start the run of the lemming.